Nursing Research How Data Collection Influences Statistics Essay

Nursing Research

How Data Collection Influences Statistics

Data collection influences statistics in several ways. First, data is collected according to a "category scheme," which is the establishment of meaningful categories in which the data is collected and analyzed (Polit & Beck, 2008, p. 508). If the category scheme is not well developed and meaningful, adequate data may not be effectively collected and examined to inform the nurse researcher about whatever topic he/she is investigating. Assuming good data collection, it allows the nurse researcher to define "themes" through common characteristics, variations and patterns shown by the collected and examined data (Polit & Beck, 2008, p. 515). In addition, data collection allows the nurse researcher to validate and refine themes through the use of quasi-statistics. Quasi-statistics is the enumeration of how often specific themes or observations are supported by collected and examined data (Polit & Beck, 2008, p. 517). If a specific theme or observation is supported by data, the nurse researcher can discard "null hypotheses." A null hypothesis usually asserts a lack of effect or a lack of difference and is used by a researcher to test a hypothesis and possibly prove it to be false. A null hypothesis can never be proven false itself; it can only be used as a tool to prove or disprove a hypothesis by data examination (Purssell & While, Nov 2011, p. 838). Finally, the nurse researcher uses the collected and examined data, the developed themes, the null hypotheses and any other thematic patterns to form a synthesized image of whatever is being investigated (Polit & Beck, 2008, p. 517).

Module 7: The Implications of Quantitative Design on Advanced Nursing Roles

Quantitative design includes a number of steps that ideally cover the entire data collection, examination and interpretation processes from pre-collection through the final examination and interpretation processes (Polit & Beck, 2008, p. 642). The steps are supposed to be consistent and precise so the data can be effectively collected, examined and interpreted according to the precise issues being addressed by research. People in advanced nursing roles use data collection, examination and interpretation to better understand situations ranging from very simple questions to very complex relationships. Consequently, thoughtful and thorough quantitative design assists the advanced nurse in accurately and effectively collecting, examining and interpreting the data to improve quality of research, quality of patient care and patient safety. For example, the journal item Breast cancer; Research from M. Montgomery and co-authors provides new data about breast cancer pointedly speaks of how certain inclusion criteria were used by quantitative design to include data collected from 30 studies about distress associated with diagnosed breast cancer and that distress' influence on treatment outcomes (Anonymous, 2011). The careful…